Meta

6 Reasons Why We Wear Jewelry

There are as many reasons why a person wears jewelry as there are people. However, like everything else in life, they all pretty much come down to the basics of human nature.

Life Status

Jewelry can be used to display your wealth and social standing. Think about it, when someone famous gets engaged, don’t you want to see “The Ice”? I always do! When there is a large Hollywood Awards show on, isn’t the jewelry simply outrageously gorgeous? What about when you have your own special event that you must “look your best” for? After choosing the perfect clothing, don’t you then begin another search for just the right jewelry and accessories?

A wedding ring is another way to signal your life status through jewelry. Whether or not a person is married can be pretty important information in some circumstances, don’t you think? According to Brides Magazine, the average cost for an engagement ring in 2018 was a whopping $7,829! Holy Crow! Folks, I could pay my car off with that much! However, I am just a simple country girl (ok, well, old lady now), and have very simple taste when it comes to my everyday pieces.

Group Affiliation

The Pope’s Ring

A Freemason Symbol can be used to identify other Freemason’s.

Another reason to wear jewelry is to signify some sort of group affiliation, such as religion (like the Pope’s ring), ethnicity (wearing your country’s flag, for instance), or a social group (like the Freemasons rings, for example). These can show people not only what affiliations you may have, but also perhaps a bit about you as a person, don’t you think? What about your high school or college ring? How long did you wear that? Do you still have it?

This type of jewelry has historically been used both publicly, and in secret, to identify like-minded people when in unfamiliar territory. There was a time when any Freemason in need, no matter who he was or where was, had a friend if he could find another Freemason. Heck, for all I know, it may still be that way (wink!).

Amulet of Protection

Any Amulet You Believe In

A Dreamcatcher

A Hamsa Hand with Evil Eye Center

An Amulet is any type of “good luck charm” that is thought to provide some type of protection to the wearer, or bearer. This could be anything from a lucky four leaf clover, to Evil Eye charms, Hamsa hands, and Dreamcatchers. Anything at all can serve as an amulet if the wearer believes.

Artistic Display

OK! This is, by far, my absolute favorite reason to wear jewelry! I also call it my “Tickle My Fancy” style, for the simple reason that it’s the only reason I can say that some pieces ‘speak’ to me. You know that feeling, right? You see something that just says ” HI THERE! YOU NEED ME!!”

My absolute favorite necklace of this type to wear is my “Turtle Necklace” that started as a Collaboration with my friend Jennifer at TheScotchPot on Etsy in which, she made some gorgeous wood burned pendants, and I made them into complete necklaces and listed them in my shop under the Section Jath Collaborative (There are currently only three of these items remaining!). I adore frogs (why? you ask? well, because they eat all those creepy crawly bugs, of course!) . She made a fabulous frog pendant, and I just kept adding beautiful beads…….and I made it so perfect, that I had to keep it for myself. I’ve worn pieces that were intended for the shop, as a sort of trial before, but this is the ONLY one I have ever actually kept for myself. It never even made to the photo stage, or I would show it to you. Sorry. Well, almost (*sheepish grin*).

Personal Meaning

A lovely example of a Mother’s ring with two children represented.

A pretty necklace with a very simple statement. Available in my Etsy Shop.

Jewelry with a “Personal Meaning” is, in my opinion, the top selling jewelry, always. It can mean a million different things to a million different people at any given time. Perhaps you wear a Mother’s ring? Or your Birthstone? Maybe a personalized necklace with your name, or longitude and latitude on it, as is all over Etsy right now? A family heirloom perhaps? Maybe a bracelet showing your love of pets, or your career, or your favorite sports teams? All of these things fall under this category of jewelry with a personal meaning to the wearer. Styles can range from the tiniest Minimalist look, to an intricate and complicated Victorian era heirloom.

Functionality

A fabulous modern brooch available from Crystalitzy on Etsy.

A stunning Vintage Barrette available from WatchandWares on Etsy.

The functional side of jewelry is often overlooked by the big, so-called ‘serious’ jewelers in today’s society. Things like shawl pins, hair combs, barrettes, tie tacks or clips, even a decorative zipper pull counts in this category. Finding these items in the Vintage section is easy enough, but if you are looking for something high quality and newly made, you are better off going to a smaller, independent jeweler, as are found in abundance on Etsy with a few simple searches.

Well, there you have it. The six basic reasons why we wear jewelry. What are your favorite go-to pieces? Why? I’ll bet your answers tell alot about who you are……..